Editing Hunting shotgun (section)

==Tactics==
*Before the major balance patch, primary-fire of one shell shot 6 pellets instead of 10, and as a result, alt-fire of 20 pellet spread was the "primary" fire.
*To kill big specimen such as [[Scrake]] or [[Fleshpound]] much quicker in high difficulties, it's advised to combine the double shotgun blast with stacked hand [[grenade]]s or a flinching tool like [[Machete]], [[Fire axe]] or [[Lever-action rifle]]. See extermination tactics of the specified specimen. At high player counts you may have to depend on combining Hunting shotgun with a high damage spike one just like [[AA12]] to weapon switch back to Hunting for a finishing touch against big specimen.
*It's best to get close to a medium specimen ([[Siren]], [[Bloat]] or [[Husk]] preferably) and hit the alt-fire. Be ready to backpedal for a second shot. If done correctly, they will usually die in 1-2 blasts. At low difficulties and low player counts, bigger specimen will die from 2-3 shots as well but their retaliation can be deadly at high difficulties with high player counts where they can endure a bodyshot easily to enrage and cause a mayhem.
*Move in a strategic way to bunch up a group of specimens and once you have clumped enough specimens together, attack the group with the alt-fire. Its wide spread can be a great advantage for killing a large group at point-blank range.
*Avoid using it as your primary weapon or trash killer. The Hunting shotgun has an extremely slow reload and is most useful for large spikes of damage against powerful specimens. In addition, ammo for it is £15 for 2 shells, costly to refill, and can be fairly expensive for constant use. The money you get from killing 4-5 trash specimen at once, barely covers the cost of a single shot and will only waste valuable ammo that can kill a big specimen in one-two double barrel blast.
*With the major balance patch, the cost for two shells has been reduced to £15, and the starting ammo has been reduced. As a result, the tactic for selling then buying hunting shotgun is now ineffective. However, as a level 6 Support Specialist, the sell price of perk bonus Hunting shotgun player respawned with can be sold for £225 which makes the sell then re-buying the discounted weapon for £224 would be effective just for one wave after respawning.
*The [[lever-action rifle]] (or others, though the rifle is arguably one of the better choices) can complement the hunting shotgun. The rifle allows the Support Specialist to remain productive at mid-ranges (precision is necessary, however) and eliminate weak single specimens quickly, while the hunting shotgun will effectively repel closer, more dangerous threats. Use your normal shotgun to pierce multiple trash specimens to manage ammo. As an added plus, the rifle and its ammo are some of the cheapest in the game. It is a good idea to obtain the shotgun first, then the rifle, as the basic pistol can suffice in the first few waves.